Cyclists must take responsibility for safer streets

By Frank Ladra
The Guardsman

The term “going green” has been on the minds of San Franciscans for decades, but the physical results of our evolving lifestyles have only recently become apparent.

As a community that prides itself upon forward thinking and the implementation of a greener society for a better future, we must take caution in becoming too full of ourselves.

Yes, riding a bike to work or school is a step in the direction toward eliminating an otherwise exhaustive carbon footprint.

But rest assured, cyclists: your shit stinks too. The road was meant to be shared, and the laws were meant to be obeyed.

With gas prices at an all-time high, hundreds, maybe even thousands, of San Francisco commuters have replaced their automobiles with bicycles as a means of transportation. However, they are still using the same roads to get to their destinations.

The result is a chaotic blur of vehicles and bikes in every direction. It’s no surprise that accidents — some fatal — occur on a regular basis.

So who rules the road?  Who has the right of way? Obviously, there needs to be equality for all commuters.

Thus, the bike lane was created to remind drivers that roads were not solely theirs, and extra caution should be exercised to ensure cyclists would be just as safe on city streets.

In certain areas, the lanes have been clearly divided with green painted asphalt and “safe-hit” posts as barriers to prevent automobiles from entering into them.

Despite the lane improvements, unnecessary accidents continue to occur regularly.

Delivery trucks and vans frequently park in the designated bike lanes for loading and unloading. Although these stops are temporary, they force bicyclists to veer off course and enter into car lanes.

Cyclists too, are creating risky situations by not abiding to standard traffic laws, such as stopping at red lights or assessing their surroundings before making sudden turns.

In the bicycle section of the California Department of Motor Vehicles handbook, the first listed rule states that cyclists “must obey all traffic signals and stop signs.” Yet any San Franciscan can walk along Market or Valencia streets to find cyclists blatantly ignoring this rule.

Without police involvement, unnecessary traffic incidents between cyclists and motorists will continue to occur.

So why aren’t police forces cracking down on these law breakers? Automobile drivers are regularly receiving citations for casually entering crosswalks when only one pedestrian is crossing the street, but some cyclists are racing through red lighted intersections without thinking twice.

Take notice, cyclists. The next time you’re approaching that light or stop sign, thinking you can safely race through it because you are saving the planet by reducing emissions, consider this:

Each year in California, more than one hundred people are killed, and hundreds of thousands more are injured in bicycle collisions. The keys to safe bicycling include being predictable, visible and communicating your intentions to motorists.